Piper Chapman
Piper Elizabeth Chapman portrayed by Taylor Schilling, is the main character in the original Netflix series Orange is the New Black. Piper's character is based on the author of "Orange is the New Black: My Year in a Women’s Prison", Piper Kerman. Biography Childhood Piper was born June 7, 1981. She grew up knowing she would become a wealthy woman on the east coast in an upper middle-class family and is a self-proclaimed WASP. She is the middle child, with an older and younger brother. Her older brother has been referenced as "the perfect son" but has not appeared in the series. Her younger brother, Cal, was generally regarded as the "black sheep" of the family before her incarceration. Her parents were obsessed with appearances and projected this onto their children, and her father subsequently is unwilling to visit his daughter behind bars. At the time of her incarceration, she is 31 years old. She graduated from college, but spent some years after graduation travelling and seeking to find herself. During college, she met her best friend, Polly Harper, and the two started a soap company called PoPi. Life with Alex Looking for a job after graduating from college Piper meets edgy Alex Vause at a bar. Though she has never dated a woman before, they quickly begin a relationship. In love and thirsting for adventure, Piper is unbothered by the fact that her girlfriend is an international drug smuggler. They travel the world together in high style, and on one occasion Piper agrees to traffic a suitcase full of $50,000 in drug money to Belgium and immediately regrets it. Despite her discomfort in committing criminal acts herself, she is content to quit her job as a waitress just to travel with Alex to places as far-reaching as Bali, Cambodia, and Belgium, living off the enticing incentives of the global drug trade. Eventually, Alex is desperate, and begs Piper to traffic again. Piper refuses, and they break up for good. Piper moves on much more quickly than Alex, who is heartbroken by their break-up and eventually turns to heroin to try to get over it. Piper introduced Alex to Polly while they were dating, but her best friend openly did not like her. Piper did not introduce Alex to her family, though, as they were all surprised to find out she'd been in a homosexual relationship when she sat them down to explain the circumstances of her sentencing. Life with Larry Years later, Piper meets Larry Bloom, a mutual friend of Polly and her eventual husband, Pete. After chastising a homeless person for not taking care of his dog to her satisfaction, Piper is bitten by the beast. Using her extra key, she stumbles into Polly and Pete's apartment to find Larry. Larry is instantly attracted to her and helps her get cleaned up, and they unexpectedly bond. They jokingly wonder why Polly and Pete never thought to set them up before, but it quickly becomes apparent that no one really thinks that they're perfect together - not even them. After the charges come through, just two years shy of the statute of limitations, Larry vows to stick by her and they sit down together to tell her family. Piper explains to her horrified mother that she was a lesbian at the time, but is not anymore, and is horrified herself to admit to her grandmother that she wasn't really into what she was doing for the money. Spending a nice day at the beach to mark her remaining days of freedom, Piper is reading books about getting through prison when Larry unexpectedly proposes. Although she is surprised that he would do this before she leaves, he insists that he has to lock their relationship down. She tearfully accepts his proposal, and agrees to get married after she gets out of prison. The day before she has to leave for prison, Larry, Pete, and Polly throw a farewell party for her. She apologizes to Polly because she is going to miss her baby shower, and the two joke about how Piper is going to keep her eyebrows maintained behind bars. Later that night, she and Larry decide to have sex one final time before she leaves. Just as they begin, she leaves to go use the toilet and Larry tells her that she is beautiful. In the bathroom she sobs, the realization that she is leaving for prison hits her. When she comes back out, she returns Larry’s compliment and gets back into bed. When he notices that she has been crying she tells him to forget about it and just have sex with her. Litchfield Prison Season One The story began when Piper, who lived with her fiance, Larry Bloom, found out she was named in a case of international drug trafficking and decided to turn herself in. In the first episode, she spent a lot of time with Larry and in her final moments before being taken in, she made sure he knew how much she loved him. Although Piper tried hard not to get on anyone's bad side, she had a habit of saying the wrong things at the wrong time. Red, for instance, is the first person who suffered from her thoughtless words and in retaliation refused to give Chapman any meals, as she was the head cook of the prison's kitchen. As well as insulting the food in front of the head cook, on Piper's first day in prison she discovers that Alex Vause, her ex, is in prison with her and that she would have to deal with the person responsible for her incarceration. Although Alex wanted to reconnect with her, Piper chose to avoid her despite Alex sneaking her some food. Meanwhile, Piper found a way to make it up to Red for insulting her food by creating a lotion to help with her back problems. Healy soon took an interest in Piper because she has a fiance and is upper-class, which led him to think he can use her as a puppet. During the prisoners council elections, she is chosen for a spot despite not even running for one. Piper asks Larry to ask his father Howard, her lawyer, to disclose if it truly was Alex who named her. Although Alex did name her as an accessory, Howard convinces Larry to lie to Piper and say it was not her in order to prevent Piper from doing something rash and extending her sentence. Thinking she has been a jerk to Alex for ignoring her, Piper makes up with Alex and they become friends. At Taystee's farewell party, she and Alex dance in a "sexually provocative" way, Pennsatucky gets Healy. Healy, feeling betrayed by Piper and being hugely homophobic, sends her to the SHU. When Piper gets out, she and Alex have sex. What they don't know is that while Piper was in the SHU, Healy called Larry to tell him that Piper was cheating on him with Alex. After Larry ignores her for a couple of weeks, Piper manages to get a hold of him and discovers he knows that she cheated on him. In anger, Larry tells her that Alex did name her. Realizing that Larry and her have little chance of making up and that Alex is the only one she has, Piper acts forgiving towards Alex, much to her surprise. Meanwhile, in an effort to make up with Pennsatucky after getting her sent to Psych, Piper agrees to be baptized. When facing the laundry tub meant to be her baptismal pool, Piper can't go though with it. Pennsatucky feels disrespected and decides that she needs to kill Piper. She, Leeane, and Angie threaten her in the showers with a razor blade melted into a toothbrush. Before they are able to harm her, a guard yells at them to leave because its not their assigned bathroom. Eventually, at the Christmas Pageant, she leaves to go outside, where Pennsatucky corners her and attempts to stab her. Using Taystee, Poussey, Black Cindy, and Janae's fighting advice, she disarms and beats up Pennsatucky. Season Two Season 2 opens with Piper being ushered out of solitary as guards ignore her furtive questions. She is shoved into a van as she is transported with several other inmates to an unknown location. As the van finally comes to it's stop, Piper realizes that they are going on an airplane. Guards continue to ignore her questions. As the plane lands, she realizes that they have landed in Chicago and she comes to her own conclusion that she must have been transported for beating Doggett and she attempts to adjust to her new surroundings. She sees Alex in the yard one day and persuades a male inmate to bring the two together. Piper discovers she is in Chicago to testify in the trial of Alex's drug boss, Kubra Balik, and the stay is temporary. Alex forcefully pushes Piper to lie about knowing Kubra, because Alex fears he will exact revenge. However, Piper wishes to tell the truth. We see several flashbacks from Piper's childhood noting her complicated past. Piper meets with her lawyer, Larry's father, who strongly advises her to tell the truth. In the van on the way to the trial, Alex pushes one last time for Piper to lie about knowing Kubra, saying she (Alex) will be screwed over if they don't tell the same story. Piper gives in and lies under oath at the trial. Afterward, Howard, washes his hands of her. Alex then informs Piper that although Alex planned to lie she decided to tell the truth, as it "all happened so fast," which leaves Piper in contempt of court; Piper now faces perjury charges and additional time. Piper shouts angrily at Alex, who is being led out of prison, ostensibly to be released. Piper isn't seen again until Ep. 3 where she returns to Litchfield. She is put back in the same room as when she first arrived. At lunch, she talks with Nicky about Alex, her paranoia that everyone keeps looking at her, and they both confess they missed each other. Piper comforts Brook Soso, a new inmate, because her nightly crying was disturbing the sleep of other inmates. She refuses to call Brook, "Soso" because "she can't say it with a straight face." The next day, she threatens Brook for lying in her bed, claiming that she is "A lone wolf who rips out the throat of sheep," shutting down Brook's friendly advances and leaving her stunned at the harshness of her words. Piper is also seen interacting with Suzanne Warren, thanking her profusely for making it look like a fair fight against Pennsatucky. Under the influence of Vee, Suzanne refuses Piper's offer of seeing the movie together, leaving Piper confused as Suzanne struts off with Vee. Season Three In season three, Piper and Alex start an illegal business called"Felonious Spunk" (Piper has several fellow inmates wear extra panties made in the Whispers workshop and then smuggles the soiled undergarments to Cal, who sells them online for upwards of $70 a pair). Her role of power in the business provides an outlet for Piper's selfish, cruel, and manipulative side. She initially pays her hired panty-wearers with flavor packets from ramen noodles, which are sought-after commodities to improve the terrible new prison food. Flaca, however, persuades Piper's other employees to demand part of the cash profits, which Piper had been keeping all to herself. Piper agrees to pay a better wage, but then fires Flaca to dissuade others from challenging her as well. When Alex, already paranoid about being a potential assassin target, bows out of the risky panty business, Piper allows Stella Carlin, her romantic interest of the moment, to be her new business partner . After setting up a cash card via a hidden cell phone, Piper notices that her profits have disappeared. Though she initially blames Flaca for the theft, Stella eventually confesses, reasoning that she needed funds for her upcoming release. In a cold act of revenge, Piper collects an arsenal of hidden contraband she discovered while searching the prison for a cell phone and plants it all in Stella's bunk. The COs discover a shiv, a lighter, cigarettes and marijuana in Stella's bunk, and as Stella is hauled away to max, Piper calmly flashes the tattoo that Stella herself gave her: "Trust No Bitch" Personality Prior to her incarceration and during her first few months in jail, Piper shown as a fairly quiet and naive woman whose sheltered upbringing resulted in a good deal of ignorance about the harsh realities of the world. She is a slave to trends (Alex once recalls how Piper would dress "head to toe in Urban Outfitters"), and focuses on minor behaviors that society seems to deem important or fashionable (such as obsessively bringing re-usable bags to the grocery store, though she never remembers to use them until her purchases are packed in disposable bags). During the beginning of her sentence, Piper is rather timid and frightened around the other inmates. However, throughout the series, a darker side of Piper is revealed: a woman with the ability to be cruel, spoiled, sanctimonious and manipulative to get what she wants. Both sides of Piper are shown repeatedly throughout the series, though the tougher persona all but eclipses the timid one by the culmination of season three. Piper also has a habit of coming off as obnoxiously self-righteous at times. However, unlike many of her fellow inmates (notably, Alex), she is often willing to reflect upon her negative actions and work on character flaws pointed out by her peers. Physical Appearance Piper is a slim woman in her early 30s with shoulder-length blonde hair and blue eyes. At the time of her admittance to prison, she has a tattoo of a tropical fish on the back of her neck. In the third season, she allows then-love interest Stella Carlin to tattoo the phrase "Trust No Bitch" on her arm in white ink with a prison-made needle. Piper later uses the same needle to tattoo an infinity symbol on the side of her own torso. Due to her conventionally attractive appearance, the other inmates nickname her "Taylor Swift." Crazy Eyes, during her attempt to recruit Piper as her prison wife, calls her "Dandelion." Relationships Romantic *Alex Vause (Ex-Girlfriend,Starting from season 3 becomes her girlfriend) *Larry Bloom (ex-fiancee) *Stella Carlin (Brief partner) Friends *Nicky Nichols - Nicky takes an instant liking to Piper and is one of Piper's closest allies in Litchfield. She has no problem talking about things that make Piper uncomfortable such as her relationship with Alex. *Lorna Morello - Lorna is generally friendly to Piper all the time. She is the first inmate Piper speaks to and helps her adjust to prison life. * Yoga Jones - She was one of the first inmates to help out Piper. *Red - Initially Red is indifferent to Piper until Piper unknowingly insults her food. Red starves her out for disrespecting her food for a while until Piper creates a lotion made of pepper juice for her aching back which mends their relationship. After Piper returned from Chicago, she ended up sharing the same bunk as Red. They had a very rocky start at first, but they ended up becoming friends, as they started to bond and relate more. *Anita DeMarco - Anita is part of the welcoming committee for new inmates that help them adjust to prison life. She's helpful to Piper. * Tasha Jefferson - Taystee happily sports a lock of Piper's blond hair. When she violates her parole purposely, she is assigned to be Piper's new roommate. * Polly Harper (?)- Polly is Piper's best friend from college. They had a soap business together which collapsed after Piper's incarceration and Polly's pregnancy. Eventually, she gets together with Larry which causes friction between their friendship. Enemies *Pennsatucky (?) - Initially, Tiffany 'Pennsatucky' Dogett is friendly to Piper until Piper 'disrespects' her, which sends her on a quest to murder her. In their confrontation during the Christmas play, Piper angrily punches Pennsatucky repeatedly to the extent that she needs oral surgery for new teeth, something which she asked of Piper when she was elected a WAC member. Because of her new teeth, it seems as if Pennsatucky has gotten over their past conflicts and happily hugs Piper on Caputo's orders. * Healy (?) - Initially, Healy is lenient towards Piper and offers his assistance to her in the belief that "she's not like the other girls." When he learns of Piper's sexual history, he becomes more hostile towards her, going to the point of locking her in solitary just because her and Alex were dancing close. Later in Season 2, Healy helped Piper receive furlough for her Grandmothers funeral. Later he allows her to start a newsletter and they seem to bond over this. * Alex Vause (?) - Broke up and quitting the panties prison company, it should be noted however that they were still on speaking terms after this. * Stella Carlin - Stole from Piper. Piper got revenge and got Stella sent to max. Novel In an interview by a YouTube channel known as 'HeyUGuys,' Schilling explains that the show is not trying to 'impersonate' the author. Piper Chapman is an individual character who does not solidly resemble Kerman and her experience in prison; however, as the series was inspired by her book, some of the events in the series are similar to those that take place in her publication. Memorable Quotes "Will you be my girlfriend?" -Piper Chapman (to Alex) "Why do you always feel so inevitable to me." — Piper Chapman (to Alex) Piper Chapman Gallery Season 1 Promotional Photos PiperPromo1.png PiperPromo2.png PiperPromo3.png "I Wasn't Ready" PiperEp1A.png PiperEp1B.png PiperEp1C.png PiperEp1D.png PiperEp1E.png PiperEp1F.png PiperEp1G.png PiperJanaeDayaEp1.png PiperEp1H.png PiperAlexEp1.png PiperEp1I.png PiperEp1J.png PiperEp1K.png PiperEp1L.png PiperEp1M.png References Trivia * Piper is a Gemini, as confirmed by Piper in Thirsty Bird.